28 February 2024 , 15:23
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A woman living with epilepsy says she had to make a 120-mile round trip to get lifeline medication.
Hannah Hiles has been taking the drug Tegretol for 25 years to control her condition, which causes her to suffer seizures. But due to a national shortage, many pharmacies are not currently stocking it.
The issue is also reportedly affecting supplies of medications for ADHD, diabetes, HRT and some forms of cancer. Hannah, 44, from Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, was only able to find a pharmacy in London stocking the drug.
The PR manager for a charity ended up having to travel to Coventry - 60 miles from her home - while her aunt in London met her there to hand over the meds. “I’ve lived a completely normal, standard life for 25 years. I don’t even think about it on a day-to-day basis,” Hannah told the BBC.
“I’ve never taken any other type of epilepsy medication, this is all I’ve ever known," she said. “Knowing there was a shortage of the type that I take was extremely worrying.”
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Hannah has been taking the medication Tegretol for 25 years (The People)The Epilepsy Society said earlier this month it was aware of epileptics reporting issues getting their usual medication, particularly for the drugs Tegretol and Novartis. The shortages are thought to be a result of both supply issues and difficulties sourcing th drug's ingredients.
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “Our priority is to ensure patients continue to get the treatments they need, which is why we are working with industry, the NHS and others to further improve the supply of other epilepsy medications as quickly as possible. Medicine supply issues do not only affect the UK, and we have a range of well-established processes and tools to manage them when they do occur.”